Hiyokoi - Reviews

Warning this Review May Contain Spoilers

Hiyokoi, I adore the manga of this series and I was so excited to find out that there was a adaption for it, but this honestly was a bit disappointing. It was just so short and it felt like it could of done with being a longer or just being a longer series.

STORY

It was a basic romance school story, but it was all over with so quickly it was just ehhhh.It was kind of all over the place and just seemed off. Luckily it still had a story hence why I didn't give it a completely terrible score, it's  watchable.

ANIMATION

It was fitting, for the style of anime this was, a cute and fluffy little movie that didn't take too much to think about in the sense that there wasn't any drama or intense fighting.

SOUND

Voice acting was good, I felt that the characters voices really lived up to what I expected when I read the manga. Again I haven't really got too much to say in this area except it was okay overall, nothing really stood out in this section like some other series I've watched.

CHARACTERS

Hiyori was cute, yeah she's cute...I haven't got much to say about her or the other characters in fact. Due to the lack of character development I don't feel like I have too much to say in this area, if you want more character development then you should just read the manga but the characters here were cute and fluffy just like the manga but they have no development just warning you xx

-AngelBeatsYui-

PS- This is for the Daily Anime Marathon for March 2016

Hiyokoi is one of those shojos mangas adapted in a series. It starts with airing an OAV to give you a before taste.

The story is cliché and not original at all. It reuses Lovely Complex premise in a different way. The boy is a tall giraffe and the girl? A chick litterally. One single episode is clearly not enough to pinpoint the goodness of the story though.

The sound is quite normal here. Not famous voice actors, but quite enjoyable. Nothing extraordinary here.

Animation is average again. Not messy but definitely not memorable.

Characters are cliché. The frightning but nice guy; the cute small girl, the reliant best friend, etc. You got the point. Every shojo manga cliché is here. Nice vibe to the characters though, specially the main guy.

Overall, if you like traditionnal shojo manga settings in high school and overwhelming heart series, you definitely should try this one out. Not exceptional but not lame either. Some ideas in the first episode are a bit exagerated (tell me how the girl can fall in love with the guy in just two days!?) If this project ever come out as a full fledged series I will watch it for sure.

Score: 3.2/5 but waiting for the actual finished series. You never know what may happen. Maybe it will be a splendid gem.......but I highly doubt it.

Next! Mononoke and my actual review of Black Butler season 1 and Trust and Betrayal.

Okay so first off i love the story. Its extreamly cute hate the fact there is only one episode and that it is only 23 minutes long i just hate that. It was a cute story and i think they should of done more episodes honestly i thought it should of been a series It would of been a good one but sadly its only one episode thats why i give it a 9.5 i love every thing else but that.

-Story-

The story of Kiyokoi is a simple love story about a high school girl who is extremely shy, who eventually overcomes this shyness and makes friends and finds love. It may not be the most original story line in the world, but the overall story was cute and somewhat entertaining. There were a couple of moments that did provide some humor that provides one with a light chuckle. Even though I did find Hiyokoi entertaining, it wasn't really that entertaining for me. However the story is a cute lovey-dovey type story and had more good than bad.

-Animation-

The animation was not all that great but it wasn't terrible either. I felt that the background were extremely static and uninteresting, and that they didn't provide an environment into which the characters could be immersed. However, the characters themselves were pretty well done and they were able to show emotion.

-Characters-

The characters were pretty likable overall. Hiyori was a cute little character that I found to be likable. She is extremely shy, but she is able to make friends with the help of Yuushin, who sits next to Hiyori and is pretty much the polar opposite of her in personality. I found him to be likable as well, but he seemed kind of uncaring to Hiyori at times, and can seem like a jerk at the begining if you look at it one way. Despite the very short time we have with these characters, Yuushin is able to have Hiyori have a major character change as she overcomes being shy.

-Overall-

Hiyokoi is a cute little story, but is not very entertaining, and isn't an anime with great backgrounds, but the characters ane nice and its an all around good story.

In anime school-based romances are ever popular, usually have simple story that deal with the tribulations of high-school life, being accepted, finding the one they love and such, and Hiyokoi is no exception, this refreshing OVA (well ‘other’ classed on Anime-Planet)brings about a simple tale about a very small girl, in a much larger world. The thing that surprised me the most about Hiyokoi was the conciseness of the OVA, it felt like a one-shot for anime, a trail at a possible anime, which went off quite well, in my opinion.

Story:

Being a shoujo, school-based romance, a lot of things are as standard, for example; the handsome male character popular with everyone, and the main character who has eyes for this main male (even if they don’t accept/realise it). The biggest problem with OVA’s as the either have too much and leave the audience confused or too little and have the audience asking too many question, however I believe Hiyokoi is different, the story that it uses is simple and short, creating a successful orientation and leaving a nice lead up to an anime that may follow. This OVA details the first day of Hiyori, after returning from an accident, which left her hospitalised. It also portrays how she has to cope with her own shyness and the fact that she is coming into a class that has already been at school for a period of time.

Animation:

Animation wise Hiyokoi features the clean looking animation that has been coming out in recent years and feels reminiscent to Kimi ni Todoke or Toradora, the character the designs are also similar and make it easy to distinguish who is who. Another thing about Hiyokoi is that the size differences are really well defined, if a character is deemed short, she looks short, I’m not sure of which anime, but some don’t do this very well. The use of bright colours adds to the cheerful light-hearted mood of Hiyokoi and makes it easy to watch, but not too bright as to blind the audience.

Sounds:

The sounds used in Hiyokoi are very much like any anime; realistic sound-effect to help the audience hear the commotion and feel part of the anime, but the thing that surprised me was the soundtrack. The soundtrack is simple but helps the mood progress, the sounds complement the scenes and add to the overall cheerfulness of the anime, even in parts where Hiyori is nervous, the soundtrack keeps light-heart and reinforces to the audience that things are fine. The voice acting is nice and characters suit the voices they are given, the timid voice of Hiyori contrasted to the loud and proud voice of Hirose are a good mix and no voice seems out of place, very pleasing. The ending of the anime is a placid electronic instrumental, which also (as most of the music) add to the cheerfulness and light-heartedness of the anime.

Characters:

This aspect of the anime was great, Hiyori’s character was clearly established and enough of her history was known to allow the audience to understand her circumstances and why she acts like she does, however, I found that her nervousness to the point of tears sometimes was a bit much. That aside I think for a character of her stature, this fits quite well. You get introduced to three other prominent characters who act as a support to Hiyouri’s story. Ricchan, her best friend, this friendship is conveyed across simply, showing that Ricchan cares and always looks out for her friend. Another character, Hirose, has lead male material; good looks and very tall (which helps drive the main point of the anime) as well as having a carefree and easy going nature. I believe that if Hiyokoi was to be made an anime this ‘perfect character’ would have his faults that would ultimately make him a great character. Finally we have Natsuki, considered minor as her role is very small, and just helps with character development. None of these three characters I just mentioned have an explained history, but this is acceptable for the anime is only a 23 minute OVA.

Overall:

Hiyokoi is a simple, well-crafted, feel-good shoujo OVA, about dealing with fears and opening up. The story is concise and not too long, the music is pleasent and the characters are well placed and so promise, if the OVA was to become an anime. I found it an easy watch with no extremes, just a honest quick shoujo fix.

 

Reviewer’s Note:

If your reading this please tell me what you think ^.^